If you wish to understand the Cavalier class and to expand the options available to these mounted combatants, the Cavalier’s Creed is an excellent sourcebook. The feats contained within are mostly applicable to all classes but especially those characters with a mounted focus.

The Cavalier’s Creed: Advanced Feats is a 16-page PDF (13-pages if you remove the cover, ad and OGL page) for the Pathfinder RPG written by Sigfried Trent and published by Open Design. This is part of Open Design’s Advance Feats line for Pathfinder.

The layout is primary traditional two columns and the table of feats clear to read. The cover is full color while the minimal interior art is mostly black and white carefully chosen public domain art to support the theme.

The Cavaliers Creed begins with an introduction to this product and it intention, which is to provide a detailed look at the Cavalier class and ways to play it as well as providing additional options for the class. It then proceeds to do just that, outlining the strengths and weaknesses of the class and provides basic advice to consider when playing the class. All quite well done.

Next are the thirty new feats, only three of which are tied to Cavalier class abilities, and each has paragraph or so of commentary that talk about the reasoning behind the feat and occasionally potential balance issues with a feat. Personally, I really like this insight into the design process. The feats are solid mechanically and certainly aimed toward what the Cavalier does well including several new teamwork feats and others to be used by mounted fighters.

I never really saw the benefit to mounted combat in Pathfinder; from my perspective, it seemed like an expensive and somewhat dangerous proposition. After all, you had to sink a lot of feats into it, and most mounts seem to have a “kill me” sign around their necks. Even with the advent of the Cavalier class from the Advanced Player’s Guide, it just didn’t seem like something I’d be interested in.

But on a whim, I decided to check out Advanced Feats: The Cavalier’s Creed, since author Sigfried Trent has some serious street cred where feats are concerned. So I checked out the book and, for possibly the first time ever, I’m thinking about how it’d actually be kinda cool to play a mounted warrior.

Advanced Feats: The Cavalier’s Creed starts by talking about the cavalier class’s strong points before it heads into the thirty new feats based around them. Note that these are based around the class only in a loose sense, as something like three-fourths of the feats don’t require that you have cavalier levels to use. This is a good thing, as the book presents feats that deliver things I’ve seen players wanting for a long time. Near and Far, for example, lets you attack adjacent enemies with reach weapons, while Shaft and Shield lets you use two-handed polearm weapons in one hand. Several feats here are written expressly for animals, such as Clever Critter, which effectively grants a creature an extra 2 points of Intelligence (for that Lassie-level intellect).

What really made these feats stand out for me, however, was how (like other books in this series) the author includes a personal commentary with each feat, giving us a few sentences about why they were written the way they were. I’ve always loved these “behind the curtain” peeks and this is no exception. Sigfried Trent not only has great feat design experience, but he shows that experience off here.

The book closes with three example cavalier builds. These are the green knight (attract enemies’ attention and protect the party), the tawny knight (a small-sized hard charger), and the black knight (heavy damage-dealer). These list all of the various options that cavaliers should take at each level, including class features, feats, and ability score increases. Helpfully, they also list how to level the mount as well.

Needless to say, this book is an absolute must-have for anyone playing a cavalier, and extremely useful if you’re interested in a character that fights on a mount, uses polearms, commands followers, or fights with teamwork. There’s a lot of great options here, so mount up and check out The Cavalier’s Creed.

As the Introduction states, this product (like the others in the Advanced Feats line) is more than a collection of feats: it's an exploration of the potentials and ramifications of the Cavalier class as a whole. Of the classes offered in the Pathfinder Advanced Player's Guide, it's the only one not to make use of magic, but gives those players fond of both strategic combat and sheer role-playing bravado scope to shine. Two standout features of the class are the challenge ability and the mount. The mount is more than a mere nag, with its own feats, and a good understanding of mounted combat and the capabilities of the Ride skill will stand a cavalier character in good stead. The use of Orders primarily build in good role-playing opportunities, but each provides advantages and limitations as well. Good with both combat (especially in situations where you can mount up) and with social skills fit for the courts of princes, it makes for an intriguing class to play.

Throughout the work, the illustrations fit well, with a mix of mediaeval woodcut-style images of knights in combat and several painted heraldic shields, again reflecting the rather 'Arthurian' style of this class. As a herald painter, there's really only one questionable one, a gyronny of eight sable and vert in flagrant breach of the rule of tincture!

And so, on to the feats. Whilst aimed at Cavaliers, most can be taken by any character who meets the prerequisites. The majority serve to hone combat abilities, and to focus on particular areas or specific fighting styles. However, one gem is Moral Chameleon, which permits a Cavalier to switch Orders without losing all that he had gained from membership in an Order he's decided to leave. Several empower battlefield teamwork - Back to Back, Tag Team Fighting and Pack Attack stand out - while others are aimed at the Cavalier's mount rather than the rider. Near and Far enables you to use a 'reach' weapon such as a polearm in close quarters, certainly something real-world combatants can master with the correct training and useful when a melee moves unexpectedly or an opponent tries to rush you. An interesting feature is the 'commentary' given with many feats, presenting insights to the author's thought processes as the feat was designed.

Finally a selection of character builds - planned progressions to support a specific approach to the character as a whole - are presented. For the Cavalier, the options are the Green Knight, the Tawny Knight and the Black Knight. Lovers of the Arthurian type of knightly adventure will recognise the tendency of certain knights to be known by colour instead of their names. The Green Knight specialises in being a noble defender of other party members and of society as a whole. A bold style is proposed, where the Green Knight uses his challege ability beefed up with the Provoke feat to goad his chosen enemy into attacking him, a risky tactic that requires you to be secure in your combat abilities, and the build emphasises shield work and tactical teamwork to reflect this.

The Tawny Knight is focussed on the combination of rider and mount, and a Small race is chosen to maximise the opportunities of remaining mounted in situations where larger Cavaliers might be forced to get off due to space limitations. So the example is a gnome riding a timber wolf, with a wealth of mounted combat feats and leadership skills to make the most of their combat potential. Finally, the Black Knight is a combat monster, whose challenge ought to make his opponent ensure that his affairs are in order! Even his mount is given the Intimidating Prowess feat (and levels in the Intimidate skill), and is able to fight independently using teamwork with his rider, as well as when the Black Knight is mounted.

This is a considered and well-balanced (in game mechanic terms) look at the Cavalier class, and is recommended to anyone considering playing one.